Question: How did Matrix know that the gun store had a hidden room full of illegal weapons such as automatic rifles, rocket launchers, and anti-personnel mines? There isn't any dialogue explaining how he knew the room was there and how he knew the general location of the hidden switch to open the room.
BaconIsMyBFF
6th Aug 2019
Commando (1985)
Answer: Most likely knew the store owner's tendencies or a scene cut from the movie that would have filled in the missing information.
5th Aug 2019
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Continuity mistake: When Aunt May first answers her front door it opens outward. Every other time the door is shown it opens to the interior as it should - front doors always open inwards.
2nd Aug 2019
The Dark Knight (2008)
Factual error: After escaping the hospital, Harvey Dent wears the same charred suit he was wearing when he was brought to the hospital. That suit would not have been neatly taken off and left intact. It would have been cut off with shears so as not to accidentally remove any damaged skin and flesh when pulling the pants and shirt off. The blazer might still be intact but certainly not the pants and shirt.
30th Jul 2019
Bloodsport (1988)
Factual error: The time period of the story has been updated from when Frank Dux claims he actually participated in the Kumite, however the scenes with young Frank take place in the mid to late 1970's. When Tanaka's son is assaulted, the clothing and hair styles worn by young Frank and his schoolmates is not period accurate and is contemporary to when the movie was filmed. One child is even wearing a Bartles and Jaymes T-shirt, a product that didn't exist until 1981.
8th Jul 2019
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Stupidity: Beck wants to kill Peter's friends because they know his secret. Instead of using Edith to attack them directly with a drone strike, or using his illusion technology to lead them into the path of a train like he did with Spider-Man, he instead has a henchman drive them onto a bridge and leave them in the path of his next Elemental attack. Because absolutely nothing is forcing them to stay on the bridge, they all casually walk off the bus and out of immediate danger. It is unfathomable that a man as intelligent and resourceful as Beck would take such an idiotic approach, especially considering all he had at his disposal and how desperate he was.
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Suggested correction: He wanted it to seem like they were killed in the Elemental attack because it was cleaner. If they were killed by a drone it would be much more suspicious than being killed in the disaster. Once the plan goes wrong, he does simply send an Edith drone after them. If it wasn't for Spider-Man's timing, he would have been successful as well.
But that is the major problem, and why I think it was an egregious mistake in the movie. The plan "goes wrong" because it was idiotic. So idiotic that it is unrealistic that Beck, a highly intelligent person, would have made such a glaring oversight. Leaving the kids on the bridge but not trapping them at all allowed them to make an easy escape.
I think the point is that Beck thinks he is the smartest person in the room and that this plan is going to work. Should he take into account MJ and co's free will, yes, but he is so maniacal (and not thinking rationally) that it does not cross his mind. This is proven by the fact that as his plan is failing around him that he still wants his suit pressed and ready to meet the Queen because it will work out in the end in his mind. Also, to your point, having them walk in front of a train or walk off the bridge, would not make him a hero. He needed real casualties and Peter's friends were the place to start. Finally, in the sequence showing Beck and his team preparing for the attack, he was focused on the theatrics of the attack and, again, thought the size of it alone would work (he wanted it bigger, scarier, more forceful).
Suggested correction: Fury is well aware of the drone system (he berates Peter for misusing it earlier). If Beck simply utilised EDITH to kill the students, it would give away that Beck was using the drones for his own gain. Once Fury was dead, he could have used EDITH had the original plan failed, but he certainly couldn't do it until after Fury (and potentially other SHIELD agents) had been taken out. He was going to attack London no matter what, so he took the opportunity to take out Ned, MJ and Betty at the same time.
This doesn't stop him from using a targeted drone strike to kill the kids, he was planning on using it to kill Fury anyway. The fact that he fails in his strike against Fury is irrelevant to the fact that he needed those kids dead and decided to take a round-about way of accomplishing this goal. Again, he doesn't have to use a drone strike, he is perfectly capable of using the illusion technology to force the bus off a cliff or into some other immediate danger. Having a henchman drive the bus to a bridge and hope the kids are dumb enough not to escape danger when literally nothing is forcing them to just stand there and be killed is ridiculously idiotic.
Suggested correction: Characters, even intelligent ones, are allowed to make bad tactical decisions. Real-life history is replete with examples. Just because it seems unlikely doesn't make it a plot hole.
True - this was originally submitted as "stupidity", which is slightly different, but this seemed like such a massive oversight that it qualified as a plot hole.
Suggested correction: Beck's intentions were to make it look like the kids were killed in the attack by the monster. Had he just killed them with a drone out right, it would have obviously looked like murder and foul play bringing in more investigations and potential problems for him.
But again, he doesn't need to use a drone strike he can use the illusion technology to trick them into an accident. Even what he chooses to do (just leaving them on the bridge) would have also been fine had he trapped them there at all. Just leaving them there without trapping them is so stupid it is unbelievable. It's like leaving someone on train tracks but not tying them up.
Suggested correction: He was an insane person and wasn't thinking fully rationally.
20th Jun 2019
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
Stupidity: The eco-terrorists leave the Orca completely unattended allowing Madison to take it without anyone realizing until she is long gone. In addition, they don't post any guards at the exit of the bunker and Madison simply walks away without anyone noticing her at all.
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Suggested correction: They leave the Orca in their empty command room within a bunker filled with loyal men. There is no way anyone could have broken in and stolen it. Madison had the advantage of already being in the bunker and even then had to navigate through the air ducts in order to steal the Orca and escape. They wouldn't have armed men visible immediately outside because they didn't want anyone to notice that they were there.
Either one of these issues by themselves wouldn't be particularly stupid but the combination of them both would indeed allow someone to just walk in and take the Orca. You don't need to post a visible guard at the exit, but nobody is watching the exit at all.
24th May 2019
Common mistakes
Factual error: Characters referring to another star system as a "Solar System." Solar System is a proper name, it refers specifically to the system that contains Earth. Our sun is called "Sol", hence "Solar System." Any time an alien from another planet uses the term Solar System to refer to an alien star system it indicates the writer or actor is making a common error.
4th May 2019
Die Hard (1988)
Factual error: If the hose hanger isn't heavy enough to instantly yank McClane out of the window, but instead slowly pulls him down, then it should be light enough for McClane to simply stand up and reel it in. If his weight is enough to slow the hanger's decent, then that means it only weighs slightly more than he does. He should have no trouble standing up and walking backwards to pull the hanger back up. The mistake is that the hanger pulls him slowly at all, it should have yanked him directly out of the window the second the line ran out of slack because McClane is not anchored to the floor in any way. This scene suggest that the hanger is both heavy enough to pull McClane but light enough that McClane's weight significantly slows it, which is impossible.
20th Apr 2019
Common mistakes
Factual error: Police detectives working cases in which they are personally involved; such as the murder of a friend, family member, or their partner. Even though their superiors will often warn them to stay away from the investigation, the cops will continue to work the case on their own. Oftentimes films will imply that the cop should leave the investigation alone "for his own good", but in reality a cop investigating a case they are part of would seriously taint any evidence they uncover. If taken to trial, a defense attorney could easily have that evidence thrown out. Writers tend to get around this by having the villain engage in more crimes and be caught "red handed" or by simply having the villain be killed by the end. However it is still borderline insanity to see a cop investigating his wife's murder.
20th Apr 2019
Common mistakes
Factual error: Lawyers making a scene in the courtroom, such as raising their voice or being forceful/threatening with a witness. This sort of behavior is never allowed. Even when the attorney has permission to treat a witness as "hostile", it doesn't mean they can scream and yell. Courtroom trials are in general very quiet affairs. Any emotional outbursts by an attorney could lead to a mistrial, as this sort of behavior can influence a jury. An attorney would never be given enough leeway to badger a witness until they break down and confess to a crime on the stand, no matter what evidence they present during questioning.
4th Apr 2019
The Fast and the Furious (2001)
Question: When Vince turns up at the BBQ Leon says to him "Look who it is! Coyotes R Us! I thought you weren't hungry, pumpkin?" What in the world does Coyotes R Us mean? I have been wondering this since this movie was released.
Answer: I feel as though the saying is exactly what it means in the simplest terms. Since a Coyote is an animal and hunts for its meals, Leon could be referring to Vince being like a Coyote and having those traits. Vince has been aggressive and very territorial to Brian, especially at his advances towards Dom's sister. Vince is pretty much acting like an aggressive animal rather than a civilized human being.
27th Feb 2019
Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
Factual error: There are several mistakes after McClane steals the 18 wheeler that give away the highway scenes were shot in California instead of Maryland. There are palm trees visible at one point outside the window. There are highway signs that indicate Route 118 and Highway 110, both in California. The scene with the fighter jet is supposed to be on I-695, the Baltimore Beltway, but that road is single-level, not multi-level as the movie shows. A green bridge is visible after part of the highway collapses but there is no bridge that looks anything like that on I-695.
21st Feb 2019
Common mistakes
Revealing mistake: Pizza that is supposed to be hot and fresh because it was just delivered but is obviously cold and stale. There is never any melted cheese, the slices are perfectly cut and come apart easily, and the slices are firm instead of drooping. Nobody would ever pay for a pizza if it was delivered looking that way.
17th Jan 2019
Common mistakes
Factual error: In many action movies someone will instantly kill a man by approaching them from behind, grabbing their cheek, and twisting their head to the side, breaking their neck. The move is even frequently used one-handed. The torque required to actually break a neck this way is enormous and would require much more leverage than simply standing behind someone and twisting their head. Neck cranks are certainly real but they are done in a more traditional "head-lock" style on a grounded opponent. Also, a broken neck is not always fatal, let alone instantly fatal. A broken neck is not even an assured knock-out, so it is absurd to use this move as an effective "stealth kill" in spy movies.
9th Jan 2019
The Mummy (2017)
Stupidity: Dr. Jekyll must take an injection to keep himself from turning into the murderous Mr. Hyde. Hyde obviously doesn't want Jekyll to take the injections because he wants to remain in control of the body. The time between when he begins to feel himself turn into Hyde and when he has fully transformed is ridiculously brief. Why then does he keep the syringe locked in a box in his desk rather than on his person at all times?
18th Jun 2018
Aliens (1986)
Question: Has there ever been an explanation as to why the number "57" appears throughout the film? The number appears specifically three times: Ripley was floating in space for 57 years, the sentry guns have a model number of 571, and 157 colonists were killed. It just seems like the number comes up too many times to be a coincidence.
Answer: I have done some research looking into this, and I can't find anything about it. Only stuff talking about her being asleep for 57 years. I believe the other two occurrences are in fact coincidence. If it was meant to signify anything, it would likely have appeared more and as its own number of 57. Not part of 571 or 157.
12th Jul 2017
Logan (2017)
Trivia: Lennie Loftin plays Jackson in this film, the land developer trying to muscle the Munson family off their ranch by sabotaging their water supply. In 3:10 to Yuma he played the very similar role of Hollander, a land owner trying to muscle the Evans family off their ranch by cutting off their water supply. Both films were directed by James Mangold.
3rd Apr 2017
Alien (1979)
Trivia: In the chest-bursting scene, the actors had a good idea of what was going to happen, but were unprepared for the amount of stage blood that would be used. According to Ridley Scott, he knew it would be too time consuming to clean the mostly white set and re-shoot the scene, so he captured the creature bursting from Kane's chest in one take. Veronica Cartwright was not expecting to be sprayed directly in the face with stage blood so her reaction is genuine. Tom Skerritt similarly was not expecting such a gory scene and his stunned expression when the creature first emerges is also genuine.
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Answer: You are right that there is no reason given in the movie so any answer would be speculation. One possibility is it is a secret government (or criminal) arms cache which can be accessed in times of emergency and Matrix is connected enough to know about it.
He might have heard about it through the grapevine as gun guys talk. Notice how he fumbles around for the switch? That and the surprised look on his face when he walks into the secret room says he had never been in there before but had enough knowledge to know there was one.